Cruz, Revis named in field of 32 for Madden NFL 13 Cover Vote
Will the fans vote allow the Giants to Cruz to being the team featured on the cover of Madden NFL 13 or will the best-selling sports franchise be taking a vacation on Revis Island this summer?
EA released today the winners of the play-in round for the Madden NFL 13 Cover Vote. Two players from each of the NFL’s 32 franchises were selected as potential representatives for their team in the upcoming tournament-style bracket to determine the cover athlete for Madden NFL 13.
Each Wednesday, on ESPN’s SportsNation, the winners of each round will be revealed and the next Madden cover athlete will officially be unveiled on the April 25 episode of SportsNation.
Giants WR Victor Cruz, who set a franchise record with 1,536 yards in 2011 and is famous for his salsa dance touchdown celebration, will represent the Super Bowl XLVI champions in the tournament. Jets All-Pro CB Darrelle Revis will be representing Gang Green for the second straight season.
In an ironic twist, the St. Louis Rams will not have a single player representative in the 32-player field, as WR Brandon Lloyd signed with the New England Patriots after being selected as the Rams’ player representative. New England TE Rob Gronkowski will also represent the Super Bowl XLVI runner-up in the tournament.
The Jets may also be represented twice following Wednesday’s trade for Tim Tebow, who had originally be selected to represent the Denver Broncos.
In last year’s vote, Cleveland Browns RB Peyton Hillis beat Philadelphia Eagles QB Michael Vick in the final round to become the cover athlete for Madden NFL 12. Over 13 million votes were tallied in the overall competition.
“Every football fan has an opinion on who should be on the Madden NFL cover, which was highly visible given the overwhelming response and debate that ensued during last year’s campaign. We’re proud to once again put the fate of the game’s cover in our fans’ hands and let them decide who is worthy of becoming the Madden NFL 13 cover athlete,” said director of marketing Anthony Stevenson. “Our collaboration with ESPN and SportsNation helped elevate the campaign to new heights last year and we’re thrilled to team up again on this award-winning program.”
Fans can vote by visiting the Madden Vote page on ESPN or by tweeting their picks with the hashtag #MyMaddenCoverVote. Fans can also fill out their own athlete brackets and compete against friends on the Madden NFL Facebook page.
“Sports fans are embracing the new structure of the Madden NFL 13 cover vote and the response has been tremendous for the play-in round, which gives each team’s fans an increased voice in the player selected for the vote,” said ESPN’s Jamie Horowitz. “SportsNation has the most engaged social audience across the ESPN network, and enabling them to share their votes across Facebook was an ideal way to tap into some of football’s most passionate fans.”
For a full list of athletes and to vote, click here.